Carte Blanche: Hassan Hajjaj

Hassan Hajjaj is a moroccan contemporary artist. He explores using many mediums such as sculpture, furniture design, and most importantly photography. He was born in Larache Morocco and moved to London when he was 13 and worked as a music promoter before moving to design and then photography; he started producing photographs that speak to Morocco’s diverse cultural identity. Inspired by the pop art movement he started producing photographs that conveyed beyond Morocco in its stereotypical nature. His most known series is called “Kesh Angels” and portrays a women’s biker gang that rides scooters all around Marrakech. 

HENNA BIKERS @ ROYAL ACADEMY OF ARTS this summer

One of his current series is dubbed “My Rock Stars” where shoots artists whose work has inspired him; from prominent Moroccan artists to international ones. Everything is shot in his Riad/studio unless specified. Notable figures include Will Smith, Madonna, and Cardi B. His portraiture relies on contrasting motifs between the background and the clothing worn by subjects. The backgrounds of the photos are usually repurposed traditional Moroccan carpets and the clothing donned by the people in front of his lens is usually custom, also traditional moroccan wear plastered with bold unusual patterns that sometimes features iconic logos. The borders of the frames are usually actual objects from popular moroccan consumer culture as part of his reinterpretation os what pop art is.

Life can be sweet and sour and sometimes a suprise can happen that you never would think of and this was one of does moments,want to thank Madonna and her lovely family and being patient for the shoot at my riad,also thank Madonna team for making this happen and my team also,happy birthday. @madonna

"Can I kick it"marakesh 2006

In addition to his photographic work he designs furniture and reinterprets mundane Moroccan things by embellishing them with Famous Logos as an ironic play on luxury. My favorite design is the Louis Vuitton Coca Cola seat; a seating arrangement commonly used around Morocco by merchants, older people playing checkers, and neighborhood kids trying to hang out. As someone who’s been around these, the elevation of an item that no one thinks twice about and used when in a pinch is something I appreciate greatly as we sometimes don’t realise that how rooted some things are in our behaviour and it’s nice to stop and give some thought to an otherwise invisible item.

LVCC,new work in blackbmarble and gold leaf showing with the third line gallery at frieze art fair,london,marble crate worked on by the amazing Catherine Martin,thank you

LVCC,new work in marble showing with the third line gallery at frieze art fair,london,marble crate worked on by the amazing Catherine Martin,thank you

Hassan’s work is being shown in the Maison Européenne de la Photographie as part of his first retrospective in France and the exhibition includes all his most important photographic work, videos, furniture designs and clothing. He was given a “carte blanche” to transform the space and bring the essence of who he is to the exhibition. If you’re in Paris you still have 3 days to catch the show so don’t miss out.